Mondevideo a go go, an immersion into a survival story, cowboys and currency, and FUERA YANKIS

In the few days we’ve been in Uruguay we’ve received lots of opinions about its major city Montevideo, from Rhonda the missionary who warned us that the city had seen better days, to our Uber driver Vanessa with a real take on what it’s like to live in the capital city. So today we decided to form our own opinions with a deep dive into the Old City neighborhood. We began the day at Museo de los Andes, a memorial museum dedicated to the Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the Andes mountains in 1972. Sixteen of the 45 passengers on the plane survived 72 days in the snow covered mountains, enduring frigid temperatures, starvation, avalanches, illness, and horrible injuries. During our visit we viewed artifacts from the plane, personal items from the crash victims, and fun interactive experiences. One option was a large freezing machine that was supposed to give participants an idea of how cold the conditions were on the mountain. Eight people at a time climbed into the human-sized freezer for one minute, staring at each other while fans blew frozen air onto us. Jen, because she is smart and has had enough of freezing weather, opted out. So I joined seven frozen friends for the fun. Wasn’t that cold. Shorts weather in Minnesota. Almost balmy for this Minnesotan. There was no photography allowed in the museum, but Jen and I did get to take a photo with its founder, Jörg P. A. Thomsen, who happened to be staffing the information desk. I had no idea who he was and when Jen and I were asking for an employee to take our picture, good ol’ Jörg asked if we wanted him in the photo. Why not, I thought? I also thought, why? Did he assume we needed his image for our scrapbook? It was only later in the day that Jen told me that he was famous for making the museum happen. Makes sense, Jörg. Got it.

Post museum, the sisters took a stroll through the Old City, falling into the literal tourist trap known as the Mercado de Puerto. We expected to see a bunch of stalls with wares such as produce and handmade goods. Instead, we were accosted by the bearers of laminated menus offered by very eager restaurant owners vying for our business. One gave us mini glasses of sparkling wine to entice us into eating at his plastic menu palace. Interspersed between restaurants, there were souvenir shops selling the items you’d expect. I do not need a key chain, mini license plate or shot glass, thank you very much. On our way out of the trap of tourists, Maria convinced us to stop and view her plastic menu. She was kind and we talked politics in the United States as well as her side job as a Spanish language teacher. Later over our non-laminated lunch choice, J and I discovered that we were both distracted by her eyes for the entire discussion. One eye was lazy, but that wasn’t what mesmerized us. She had golden eyes, Goldeneye! Seriously, they were brilliant gold with a dark brown rim. Stunning. If you’re gonna have a lazy eye, at least make them golden delicious. 

Jen proclaimed that she would never eat at a restaurant that shoves plastic menus in her face, and lucky us, we discovered El Otro Es Mercat, a tapas bar that showcased its menu on a chalk board. And, they had a veggie quesadilla chock full of peppers, eggplant, and squash for me and a tortilla espanola for my sis. It was a family business and we talked with the owner's daughter who lives in Atlanta about the conditions in Minneapolis. She was visiting her father, helping to take care of her little three year old brother, who spent our lunch hour zooming around the place pretending to be Spiderman, complete with a Spidey shirt and mask. That kid had little Alex vibes that made me miss my boys.

Here’s a weird combination. Our next stop was Museo del Gaucho y La Moneda, which translates to the cowboy and money museum. Because those two things are a natural fit. It was quite the exhibition and didn’t fail to teach about both subjects. The museum is the ground floor of an actual, operating bank, and it has the look of an old timey financial institution, with teller windows and marble columns. We toured artwork and artifacts related to the gauchos of Uruguay and then saw examples of currency from Uruguay and beyond. Fascinating and fun.

And to wrap up our day in the big city, Jen and I took a walk on the Rambla, which is an extraordinary pedestrian path that follows the ocean for miles along the perimeter of the city. The picturesque views of the water mixed with the people watching of the Rambla made for a stroll to remember. At the end of our walk, we encountered some graffiti (there is a lot of graffiti in Montevideo and much of it is stunning, adding so much character to the city). The message said, “Fuera Yankis de América Latina. Venezuela no Está Sola!!”, which translates to Yankees out of Latin America. Venezuela is not alone!! Yep, agree, Uruguay, agree. The United States should not be messing with other countries. Fuera Yankis indeed.

The fanciest and most elegant part of our day happened when we returned to our hotel, bought Doritos and beer, and hung out in our room watching an excellent movie called Society of the Snow about the Andes plane crash. You can see our proud elevator selfie below.